All That I Am
by Nyodrite
Summary: [Future YonKaka/MinaKaka] Chasing a Suna missing-nin named Mukade was suppose to be an easy mission, Kakashi didn't know how his entire team ended up twenty years in the past and then stuck there. He also did not want to know why he was suddenly hyperaware of his Sensei.
1. Prologue: The Lost Tower

After he woke, Kakashi studied the large towers and archways that were lit in the darkness, coming to a rather troubling conclusion and bit his thumb before flying through hand seals, "_Kuchiyose no Jutsu_!"

He knew immediately that something was wrong. The dog that showed up instead of one of his pack was white and, sitting down with it's head tilted up to look at him with brown eyes, it's nose rested around waist height compared to Kakashi- though it did not matter as he could tell that it was not fully grown yet.

It took snuffed deeply before seeming to reach a conclusion and nodded before going into a position akin to a bow as it spoke, "This one has answered the call of his lord, what is it that is required of him?"

"Who are you? I did not summon you." Kakashi stated even as recognized that, even if _he_ had went into the past there was no guarantee that his pack came with him.

It-he moved back into it's-his seated position, "This one hails from the Kuvasz family and claims the name Akiyo. It is due to the lordship's original pack being unable to answer their lord's call that this one has been sent to your side. May Akiyo inquire as to what is his lord's name and what it is that is required of him?"

"...Hatake Kakashi." He answered after a moment where he decided that he could deal with this _later_. "Akiyo-san, I need you to see if there are other people here."

Moments after he spoke a giant puppet appeared, destroying a distant building as it did so. Akiyo regarded the destruction thoughtfully, "This one believes that the people which you seek are fleeing from the rampaging puppet."

"Right." Kakashi muttered, suddenly missing Pakkun all the more, already darting towards the enraged puppet and what seemed as his wayward blonde student.

Seeing the boy fall back, he adjusted his direction and landed beside his student in time to hear him finish speaking, "-oing after Sara?" The boy blinked, gapped then pointed at him, "K-Kakashi-sensei! You're here too!?"

"Ah." He acknowledged, turning towards the puppet- noting that Akiyo sat silently at his side. "Report."

Naruto straightened, "I woke up here a few hours ago and saved Sara, she's the queen of Rōran, from falling to her death. Then these masked guys came- one of them was the Yondaime!- and told me that we're twenty years in the past and Mukade showed up six years ago. Mukade changed his name to Anrokuzan and became minister of Rōran."

"_Naruto_." Kakashi interrupted, even as he suppressed the mixture of shock and longing he felt at the mention of his deceased sensei. "We don't have time for the entire story- just tell why there is a giant puppet and if you have seen the others."

The boy nodded after another building was destroyed and spoke swiftly, "You are the only one I've seen and the giant puppet is Anrokuzan- he is using the Ryūmyaku's chakra. He's after Sara."

"Then we will protect her- Anrokuzan is our responsibility after all." Kakashi decided.

Naruto grinned, "We will save Sara and defeat Anrokuzan- _dattebayo_!"

* * *

Kakashi easily allowed his student to overtake him, letting the boy save the queen from being forced to strangle herself, as he sought out the chakra signatures of the rest of his team- letting out a flare to draw their attention when he found Sakura and Sai's- before touching down. He also sensed Sensei, Chōza, Shibi and an immature version of his own chakra perk in attention at his flare- that tickled at his mind, almost like something he had forgotten but was trying to remember.

"Akiyo-san, protect the civilians." Kakashi ordered hastily when Naruto rushed the puppet with Rasengan.

The dog bobbed his head, "As you wish, Hatake-sama."

Anrokuzan batted Naruto away like a fly as he went through the hand seals of a jutsu he had only seen once;

_Hitsuji-Uma-Tora-U-Mi_

"_Doton: Musaborikuu Tsuchi_!" The ground on either sides of Anrokuzan pulled apart, forming enormous jaws that clamped down on the puppet and tore into it's body with crushing force.

Naruto touched down on the archway beside him, "Awesome! Kakashi-sensei, where did you learn that!?"

"Here and there." He waved off, focusing on the approaching chakra he sensed- Sensei, Chōza and Shibi coming quickly from the west while Sakura and Sai were approaching from the south- frowning slightly with worry when he found his missing students moving slower then they should be able to.

The ANBU team touched down beside them and Kakashi took great care not to freeze when Sensei's voice- _alive_, he is still _alive_- sounded, "Sorry for being so late."

"One would think that the Yellow Flash would arrive earlier," he spoke mildly when he felt anything but. "Eh, Sensei?"

Even though Sensei must have _known_ he was already there, he felt the man startle slightly at his voice before answering. "I simply got lost on the road of life, Kakashi-kun."

"Naruto!" the queen, Sara, called their attention before seemingly stabbing herself.

Kakashi sniffed, checked Akiyo's calm stance, and noted aloud, "There's no blood."

Sensei nodded in acknowledgement even as they moved toward the girl- what followed was Sara cutting her dress in a move which reminded him of Yamanaka Ino cutting her hair in the chūnin exam preliminaries before she announced, "I can stop the source of the Ryūmyaku and protect the people!"

"I see!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing at the girl. "That's why Anrokuzan was after your life!"

Sara agreed, adding, "Anrokuzan can't withstand the power of the Ryūmyaku at the garden where you and I first met, so he could not go there!"

"Sara-sama, can you take the people to this garden?" Kakashi questioned before gesturing to the ninken. "Akiyo-san, will you accompany them?"

Sara nodded with a quick "Yes!" before running towards the civilian crowd, Akiyo bobbed in that almost-bow with a "If that is what Hatake-sama requires of this one, then Akiyo shall do what his lord wishes of him to the best of his abilities." before loping after the girl.

He had to admit the girl worked the crowd well.

"I cannot let you live." Anrokuzan stated, pulling his body from the collapsed jaws of Kakashi's jutsu.

Naruto addressed the now frozen girl, "Go, Sara. Don't give up!" Once the girl started moving the teen addressed the puppet, "You're not gettin-"

"Wait." Chōza interrupted. "This is our job."

Kakashi nodded, "Naruto, protect Sara."

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei!" the boy agreed and left quickly, obviously already wanting to protect his new friend.

Shibi walked past him, "You should go as well, we will gain more time by splitting up."

"Maa, if I were to leave I would have an angry bird after me." He said, knowing there was a chance that Sai and Sakura would attack the three if he left.

Sensei spoke briefly, "We should have multiple lines of defense." before chasing after Naruto.

Kakashi was content to watch the other two fight as he waited for his students, knowing that he had been banned from using the Sharingan for another three days. He also knew that his disobedience would have Sakura after him, fist raised.

Shibi was first, his insects covering the ground and attacking in waves when the puppet charged- surging to cover the puppet entirely. Chōza utilized his family jutsu, taking advantage of his enlarged body to slam the puppet's head into the ground with clasped fist before grabbing the tail and sending it crashing into a row of arches. What seemed to be purple lightning came from a tower- Ryūmyaku chakra, it was the same shade as the chakra strings that Anrokuzan used to try and have Sara kill herself- and hit the puppet, making it's chakra rise at an alarming rate that killed of Shibi's insects even as the chakra altered the puppet's body.

Anrokuzan was charging a second time when Sakura showed with a shouted "_Shannarō_!" and a chakra engulfed fist that sent the puppet crashing into the ground a second time.

Idly Kakashi wondered if he should look into having Sai and Tenzo getting themselves a verbal tic- Naruto had _dattebayo_, Sakura _shannarō_ or _cha_, Sasuke had that scoffing '_Tch_' he made while Kakashi had _Maa_ or _Saa_- before deciding that it was a thought for another time.

"Kakashi-senpai." Sai greeted as the teen landed beside him, Sakura letting out a relieved "Kakashi-sensei!" when she landed next to them.

Then they were scattering as Anrokuzan charged a third time, though Shibi and Chōza managed to get caught before the puppet departed. "_Sakura_." The kunoichi understood immediately, moving to Shibi and Chōza even as the former sent out a message with his insects, and he turned his attention to the other teen. "You two were not moving at full speed, why?"

"I used a significant amount of chakra sending out mice to search for the team, it is how I found Sakura, thus I was incapable of running at my full capacity if I were to have enough chakra left on the chance I had to fight." Sai responded immediately.

Kakashi nodded, moving towards the other three with Sai shadowing him, "When they are healed we will head out towards Naruto and Sensei's location."

"Yes, Sensei!"

* * *

"Sai, do you have enough to get us over there?" Kakashi asked, eyes narrowed at where his missing team stood with Sensei, Sara and his miniature in the middle of what appeared like a temperamental lava lake.

Said teen was already sketching a bird as he spoke, "I will have only enough chakra for one jutsu after this. _Ninpō: Chōjū Giga_!"

Riding on top of a bird had gotten familiar in the time that Sai had been on the team, thus neither he nor Sakura had any trouble on the journey to the circular 'island' but Sai did stagger when they landed and the bird dispersed. "Akiyo-san, can you guard Sai?"

"Yes, this one shall do as Hatake-sama desires." the Kuvasz stated solemnly, moving from his spot beside Sara to one next to Sai.

Sensei turned to Naruto, "The _Hiraishin_ kunai I gave you, do you have it?"

"Uh..." Naruto searched himself franticly before stopping with wide eyes, "No."

Even as Kakashi's smaller self reached for, presumably, an Hiraishin kunai, Anrokuzan burst from the Ryūmyaku lake- regenerated, more powerful and in a charging attack with it's mouth gathering the Ryūmyaku's chakra.

It took seconds for him to see that no one was prepared nor would they be able to do anything in time and, with a mental apology towards his female student, he pulled up his head band and activated his Mangekyō Sharingan. "_Kamui_!"

Kakashi had enough time to see Anrokuzan twist and distort as the puppet was dragged into another dimension before collapsing.

* * *

**A/N:** There's the movie (The 4th Shippuden {The Lost Tower} for those whom don't know) and here's some questions;

Why is Kakashi there?  
He over did it during training, Tsunade knew that he wouldn't take it easy if she simply gave him leave to rest so she sent him on a mission where he would be overkill in hopes that his team would make sure he didn't do anything stupid like use his Sharingan.

What is with Akiyo?  
Kakashi went back in time, his ninken pack did _not_. And, as they are all puppies/adolescences here, when he tried to summon them, they did not respond- Akiyo noticed that a summoner ("Lordship") wasn't being answered and decided to go himself. At some point, Kakashi _will_ have to deal with the fact that he needs to create a new pack.

How did the _entire_ team end up in the past?  
Kakashi was the one whom ran after Naruto, Yamato was on the bird with Sai and Sakura so when he tried to use Mokuton to get Kakashi and Naruto, he dragged the other two with him.

How did Naruto lose the Hiraishin kunai?  
Convenient plot device. There was really no reason beyond he had to so that Kakashi would use Kamui to defeat Anrokuzan so that Team 7 (minus Sasuke) would get stuck in the past.

_**Next:**_

_"Yamato Tenzo isn't a real name, Senpai."_

_Kakashi simply turned a page, "You refused to pick a name, I refuse to call you anything but Tenzo and the kids are used to calling you Yamato- I compromised, deal with it."_


	2. 1 : Sandaime Says

The second time Kakashi woke was significantly less pleasant as, the moment Sakura registered he was awake, he was on the receiving end of a lecture, "What were you thinking Sensei!? You weren't suppose to use jutsu higher then a D-Ranked! Why would you have used _Kamui_!?"

"Maa, calm down Sakura." He told the kunoichi as he sat up, noting that they were now above ground and, while Naruto was off to the side saying goodbye to Sara, the rest of his team was in his general vicinity with Sakura immediately beside him. "There was no other way that would ensure everyone's safety. Tenzo, what happened?"

His kohai answered after the obligatory protest of his name being 'Yamato', "After you defeated Anrokuzan and we were not returned to our time, it was decided that we would accompany Namikaze-sama's team back to Konoha and consult the Sandaime on the next course of action."

"Sai?" He asked after a moment of eyeing his kohai suspiciously.

The teen answered promptly, "Yamato-taichō and Dickless both have taken great pleasure in messing with your younger self."

"You bastard! I am _not_-" Naruto roared passionately, stomping towards them as Sara departed.

Kakashi eyed his rampaging student and his kohai whom was trying to appear innocent and decided, "Naruto, each time that you pick on chibi-me is two days you go without ramen. Tenzo, I always have pictures of that time with the Wind Daimyō and I _will_ show them."

"Sensei, what happened with the Daimyō?" Sakura queried slyly as Tenzo paled in horror.

He stood as Sakura, then Naruto, harassed his kohai, "Any injuries to report?"

"No." Sai was the only one not distracted to answer, "Sakura healed those whom needed it and I have already recovered two-thirds of my chakra, you are the worst off and have been unconscious for nearing ten hours. Akiyo-san departed at the seven hour mark, noting that he was incapable for remaining any longer. Team Namikaze had gone to seal the Ryūmyaku and do a sweep of Rōran, they should arrive soon."

Sakura broke off to add, "You are not allowed to walk yet Sensei, not at the pace that we will be going."

As Gai was not present, Kakashi decided that he could live with however it was decided to keep him from walking.

* * *

There were times when Kakashi was relieved at having Sai on his team, getting to ride a wolf _("It suits you better then a lion, Kakashi-senpai.")_ and read instead of being carried was one of them. Having a teammate whom didn't argue with him was another.

"Yamato Tenzo isn't a name, Senpai."

Kakashi simply turned a page, "You refused to pick a name, I refuse to call you anything but Tenzo and the kids are used to calling you Yamato- I compromised, deal with it."

"Why do I have to be _Namikaze_ Naruto?"

He almost didn't answer, "You look enough like each other to be able to pass off as relatives."

"Shouldn't we change _our_ names?"

A shake of the head, "The House of Haruno is a merchant based one, it is not inconceivable that one of them had an illegitimate child outside the village. Hatake-bāchan left when my father was younger, it is possible that she had been pregnant at the time and had a second child- my father had even visited her before her death so it is also possible that he named his son in honor of his younger brother."

Though, to be fair, Sai did ask for clarification, "Would it be appropriate for me to call you Father?"

"I think 'Niisan' will do." Kakashi said, extremely discomforted at the thought of being called Father.

* * *

The journey had been one of a tense silence, broken only when Naruto drew someone into conversation, where everyone wasn't sure on how to interact with the other team- Kakashi _knew_ that Sensei and Chibi were sending curious glances towards him throughout and that Sakura was doing the same towards Chibi, him, Naruto and Sensei.

It was somewhat of a relief to be standing before the Sandaime, he was certain that one of his students would eventually burst under the pressure of the silence.

"One month." the Sandaime decided after mulling over what they told him- Sakura forcefully keeping Naruto silent after he tried greeting the other as 'Hokage-ojiisan'. "If you remain stuck in this time at the end of the month then you shall be assessed and placed on active duty. Outside of this group you shall be Haruno Sakura, Namikaze Naruto, Hatake Sai, Hatake Kakashi and Yamato Tenzo hailing from Daikoku."

Kakashi interrupted there, "Sandaime-sama, I request that Uchiha-dono be allowed knowledge if we remain past the one month mark- my possession of a Sharingan would lead to unnecessary conflict if he were not informed."

"I will allow your request." the Hokage granted after a moment's thought. "Do you know where you will stay?"

He spared his miniature a glance before answering, "The Hatake Clan District," he ignored how Chibi went stiff. "Reconstruction will be enough of a project to occupy us during the month and I believe it would be best if we were to remain together in case something..._unexpected_," Here he fought the urge to turn and look at Naruto- something he just _knew_ the others were indulging in by the blonde's indignant 'Oi!'. "Were to happen."

"If no one has any arguments...?" the Sandaime paused but no one, even if Chibi clenched his fists, spoke up. "Then it is decided, Team Kakashi shall be housed in the Hatake District and tasked with renovating it until the end of the month at which point, if they remain present, they will become active shinobi."

* * *

**A/N: **So they are back in the village with basically a month off.

What is Daikoku?  
It is a made up city within _Hi no Kuni _whose name is taken from one of the seven lucky gods and is considered the god of wealth (or Harvest).

What is with the names?  
It was decided that they weren't going to tell people (save for a select few) that they came from the future so they chose names and backgrounds to go by/reference. I believe I explained it adequately but;  
**Namikaze Naruto:** Cousin of Namikaze Minato on their father's side.  
**Yamato Tenzo:** An illegitimate great-grandson of Senju Hashirama.  
**Haruno Sakura:** A child of a Haruno originating from Konoha whom decided to move from the village.  
**Hatake Kakashi:** Younger brother of Hatake Sakumo, raised by his mother and met his brother the day of her death- his brother named his first born after him.  
**Hatake Sai: **An orphan child that Kakashi took in and adopted.

What is the House of Haruno?  
It is like a Clan, but for civilians. In the social ladder Houses would be bellow Clans.

**_Next:_**

_"Why can't I use _Kage Bunshin_?" Naruto whined, flopping to the ground. "I thought we were done with D-Ranked Missions!"_

_..._

_"Oi, Sensei," Kakashi very nearly leered, "I will show you mine if you show me yours."_


	3. 2 : Two Weeks

After the Uchiha Massacre, Kakashi had always thought that the Uchiha District reminded him of the Hatake District on those few times he passed by as both were abandoned 'ghost towns', degrading due to negligence.

The high walls that he remembered to be a smooth, pristine capped with a tent of dark-blue shingles were now cracked, stained by whatever vulgarities people deemed necessary to write upon them after Hatake Sakumo's fall from grace while the shingles were weatherworn, desecrated by bird feces and chipped with a significant number missing.

The wall's gate remained the silver he recalled, albeit hidden by a layer of grime, but was broken and hung open at a crooked slant and the walkway was spotty, patches of stubbornly green vegetation overtaking what had once been neatly packed stone. Immediately inside the gate was a wide open space that had once housed stalls, merchants and naughty whelps (bipedal or not) every three or four days in an outdoor marketplace that was opened to those outside the clan- or so Kakashi's father had told him when he asked about his grandparents once.

This area, the borough which his father had jokingly referred to the Hatake Den, was dotted with buildings of various sized- each with missing shingles, peeling paint, rusted bits and broken shutters. Houses were easily distinguished by their long since overgrown gardens and, to an adult, waist high fences that were erected in the hopes of keeping children from wandering off. There was a medical clinic, which had been built shortly after Konoha's first hospital had been finished, seated next to a veterinary clinic, placed as an agreement with the Inuzuka clan, with the later having it's outside lined with perpetually opened wooden kennels- he also spied the bath house that had gone out of use nearly five years proceeding his birth.

Beyond the borough Kakashi knew was the mix of farmland and woodland that his clan's settlers had argued for days to obtain when they had joined Konohagakure but, even with the gate to the aforementioned area in view, his attention was drawn to a single house. It was rather plain and simple when compared to other clan houses for their clan's head family, being a squat two-story building with the dark-brown wooden front door stained with a splatter of white paint- obtained when he was three and attempting to help his father paint the house only to trip while carrying the can of paint.

And, even if it took over two decades along with a trip to the past, Kakashi had a feeling of coming home.

* * *

The first three days of their month off consisted of cleaning Kakashi-senpai's childhood home (which included trying to wrestle control of the fridge from a mix of vermin, insects and mold before admitting defeat and simply replacing it) and placing the majority of the stuff left in the house in storage- at least what wasn't tossed out. It was a harrowing time which resulted in many arguments, Sakura insisting that the kitchen and bathrooms _must_ be disinfected, Naruto attempting to lock Sai in a closet, Sai _succeeding _in locking Naruto in a closet along with a memorable argument come shouting match between Senpai and Chibi-senpai.

Also, Naruto complaining like a green genin whose starry-eyed visions of being a shinobi was just dragged through the mud when assigned their very first D-Ranked mission.

_("Why can't I use _Kage Bunshin_?" Naruto whined, flopping to the ground. "I thought we were done with D-Ranked Missions!"_

_Sakura irritably dropped the packed stacks of shingles on the ground, "Do you want to do this on your own? No? Then shut _up_!"_

_"But Sakura-_chan_!" The blond whined, earning a shingle thrown at his face with unerring accuracy._

_Then there was silence...and an unconscious teen._

_A pause, then- "Why_ don't_ we let Naruto use clones? We can always direct them and then it'll be like a vacation with how quickly everything is fixed up."_)

Day four was a scramble in which they realized that, if they pulled together all their money, they had enough ryō for enough food for two meals and that their primary income source was closed off to them. Thus they were forced to improvise- Naruto ran through the village with his clones picking up recyclables, Sai sold paintings after taking a significant chunk of money for supplies, Sakura and he found jobs at construction sites while Kakashi-senpai ended up hunched in the duel Yamanaka-Nara garden using the Hatake family's chakra to coax medical herbs into either growing faster or out of season.

It was almost like being a genin.

* * *

Namikaze Minato would be lying if he were to say that he wasn't _curious_ about the time-travelers, one of them was his student after all and another probably his _son_. But he had stayed away from the newcomers as they brought the Hatake District back to it's former pristine condition- many reports came from shinobi seeing an army of blonds being directed by the formidable pink kunoichi with a short temper- because it made Kakashi- _his _Kakashi- uncomfortable to think about.

It was, however, inevitable that he would run into one of the time-travelers.

He merely wished that it hadn't been when he was updating his..._questionable_ reading material but fate did not favor him and thus he ran into his student-already-grown carrying a small stack of books- each the first in a different series- whilst he tried to hide his own book between _"101 Ways _Not _To Get The Girl" _and _"25 Helpful Jutsu For Safe Sex"_.

Admittedly, not his best moment- especially as his face turned as red as his girlfriend's hair when his all-grown-up-student glanced at him calculatingly before speaking.

"Oi, Sensei," Kakashi very nearly leered, "I will show you mine if you show me yours."

A part of him died right then because Kakashi should _never_ sound like _that_- and he _definitely_ should _not_ be curious to how else the man could sound like.

* * *

**A/N:**Kakashi, Tenzo and Minato...also, innuendo.

What is the Hatake Family Chakra?  
Aside from the '_white_'-ness, I decided that it could be used to help things grow- the names allude to famers so why not?

What's with the Books?  
They are fake names, I asked my brother to pick the names. Also, it is _entirely_ possible for Minato to have such reading material. Also, Kakashi only had the Icha Icha book he was carrying already and thus needs new reading material.

**_Next:_**

_"You_ are_ aware of how much _work _this is going to be, right?"_

_Naruto was not swayed, "I refuse to live in a place as depressing as this."_


	4. 3 : Wheels In Motion

"You summoned Akiyo, Hatake-sama?" the Kuvasz asked rather then stated.

Kakashi took a deep breath and answered, "Yes, I...need a pack..." those words fell out like a confession of a great sin, and perchance it _was_ as he had lost his pack- the pack he had grown with. "I was wondering if you would like to be a part of it...or at least know others whom would."

"This one would be honored." Akiyo intoned solemnly after a moment of silent contemplation. "This one shall spread the word of Hatake-sama forming a pack so that those whom wish it will know to heed your calls."

He relaxed marginally, choosing to sit now that 'official' business was over, "If we are to be partners, we should get to know one another."

"Indeed, Hatake-sama." the summon agreed, lying down with head resting on crossed forelegs. "A question for a question, perchance?"

Kakashi regarded the canine, shoved away the odd feeling that he was _betraying_ his pack and nodded.

* * *

"I think that we should see if their are other descendants from the Hatake clan and have them live here." Naruto announced as he took a seat between Sakura and Sai.

She eyed her teammate a moment before speaking, "You _are_ aware of how much _work_ this is going to be, right?"

Naruto was not swayed, "I refuse to live in a place as depressing as this."

"It might help Niisan-" Sakura didn't think she would _ever_ get used to Sai calling Kakashi-sensei, 'niisan'. "-relax, he is excessively uncomfortable when he's actually present."

Sakura mused over that, after they cleaned the main house, Kakashi-sensei had been avoiding returning unless for meals or to sleep- none of them were sure as to what the man did, though Yamato-taichō mentioned seeing him tucked away on the Hokage Monument reading a book that was _not_ Icha Icha.

It was a bit concerning.

"Alright." She nodded. "But we will need a shinobi to help us get to the records."

* * *

He, with Senpai's approval, had begun investigating the time period that they had found themselves as only Senpai had been present to gather information and, as competent as the man was, a chūnin was hardly allowed information that a jōnin or ANBU would have. He had used a wood clone, sturdier then a shadow clone and harder to detect, under the guise of a non-descript jōnin hailing from a civilian family and recently promoted out of necessity due to the war to conduct his investigations as he took care to make himself available and visible to avoid the suspicion of the sentries assigned to them.

His little project bore fruit valuable enough that he sought out Kakashi-senpai to report his findings.

"Yo," Senpai greeted, a hand idly scratching about in the dirt until he felt a small burst of chakra as the other activated a privacy seal. "Something interesting come up, Tenzo?"

In a way, he knew that he would always be _Tenzo_ (certainly Senpai saw him as such, "You chose that name, it is _yours_- not whatever one is assigned during a mission." being the only explanation that he had ever gotten) but he disagreed with his senpai's insistence on using it when he was already being addressed as another. Though, he supposed, it did not matter _now_ when he was going by Yamato and Tenzo.

Thus he did not argue of the name and merely reported, "Kaminari no Kuni, Tsuchi no Kuni and Mizu no Kuni have already declared war on Hi no Kuni. Kaze no Kuni allied with Hi no Kuni two and a half months ago, Kaminari no Kuni and Mizu no Kuni allied one and a half months ago."

"I am aware of this." Was the idle reply.

Many would take this as a sign that the man was bored, not paying attention, when it was generally a prompt to continue and _faster_. An implied order that he obeyed. "Rumor is Kaminari no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni have been talking about an armistice with one another. The Daimyō has retreated to a safe house with his guard."

"Aa?" This, evidently, was news to Senpai.

He nodded in confirmation, "This is following a nearly successful assassination attempt on the Daimyō. An ANBU team- Usagi, Tora and Inu-" It was a tad disconcerting to name _their_ team and not be part of it. "-has been additionally assigned to act as a guard or inform the Hokage of a success. Several jōnin are being coordinated with the Daimyō's forces."

"This means we have about three years before the war ends." Senpai stated grimly. "And we just brought in new able body shinobi."

He was a bit alarmed at that, at the thought of Naruto or Sakura or Sai- even himself as Senpai was the only one of them to have gone through an actual war- being sent to _war_, and it showed. "They wouldn't be-"

"You know they would." Senpai cut him off. "Sakura's a medic, those aren't in great supply. Sai, utilized properly, can acquire information that others cannot along with a swift way to carry outgoing or incoming shinobi. Naruto, with his clones, is practically a one-man army. There's no way that they wouldn't want to instill fear by showing the world that Senju Hashirama left an heir or," Senpai added wryly. "That the White Fang had a brother."

All points were true, even though he wished that they weren't because he had hoped, perhaps futilely, that neither he nor his team would have to face war (again, in Senpai's case). And he realized, with a distant and resigned sort of horror, "They're going to separate us."

"They will _try_." This growled out in a wild sort of challenging defiance that matched the look in his senpai's eye

And he believed that, somehow- someway, Senpai would keep their team together because he had seen that look before when their squad had ended up captured and Senpai refused to back down, refused to break, refused to stop trying until they _all_ made back home again.

Moments like those made him wish that Senpai had become Hokage because _surely_ no one would refuse to follow this man come hell or high water.

* * *

Minato sometimes wondered if people were right when they said that he was too soft to be a shinobi, surely a _true _shinobi wouldn't have been swayed from his course of action simply due to the pleads of two teenagers- regardless if one was his maybe-future-son.

He had, after the instance in the..._adult_ store with adult-Kakashi, studiously tried to avoid meeting one of the time-travelers once more on the chance that such a..._disconcerting_ encounter should take place second time. This went well for all of three days before he found his maybe-son standing before his front door, flanked by the teens of the group.

"Minato-ojisan?" He wasn't entirely certain how to react to being called that by his maybe-child so only offered a vague noise of acknowledgement as he invited them inside his apartment. "Can you do us a favor?"

The teen continued before he could reply either way. "See, Kakashi-sensei," Minato did _not_ react to the mention of adult-Kakashi. "Has been disappearing more then usual lately- I think it's 'cuz the Hatake ghost-town. We figured if we could track down others descended from the Hatake family and get them to live there then Sensei won't be so depressed but Sakura-chan said that we needed to have a registered shinobi with us to be able to look through the records and my first thought was you since your pretty cool and I don't remember who the others we met were plus I don't think Chibi-sensei would be much help since he's a bit of a bratty little bastard. So, will you help?"

"Depressed...?" Was really all that stuck.

* * *

"Naruto makes you uncomfortable." Sai informed Namikaze-san of the conclusion he had reached after eighteen hours of observing interactions between the two blonds.

Namikaze-san started, not due to Sai being present (the man had seamlessly shifted into a position where he could easily defend himself, yet appear casual and relaxed enough that it seemed natural, when Sai had entered his vicinity- evidently the man was, if not mistrustful, then _uncomfortable_ towards Sai) but that he spoke and the topic he had chosen, even if nothing in his voice gave him away. "What makes you say that, Hatake-kun?"

Hatake Sai.

Having a name was an interesting experience, it brought forth acknowledgement as an individual- one with desires, one with memories, one with thoughts, one with _emotions_- whom could introduce themselves to another and forged a bond- created a connection regardless if it were a positive or negative one- with the other. Having a surname that designated him as part of a family- a group similar to that of a team but with a permanence that a team is incapable of recreating, even if many chose to regard teammates as family members- and being trusted to neither dishonor it nor dishonor Senpai come _Niisan_.

It brought about a pleasant feeling, having a name.

"You are hesitant in your interactions with him," Sai supplied, all thoughts of names and the emotional connotations of them placed aside. "Wrong-footed."

Namikaze-san regarded Ugly hitting Dickless due to the other falling asleep before speaking, "I suppose you are correct, Hatake-kun. I am uncertain on how to interact with him and thus I am uncomfortable near him."

"You have a habit of avoiding that which makes you uncomfortable or uncertain." Sai stated.

This time Namikaze-san looked at him, "A habit of avoidance?"

"Yes." Sai answered before supplying information the question prompted. "Something happened that made you specifically avoid Niisan and thus us. Preceding that, while you did not actively seek us out, you would not simply turn the other way once you saw us. Now, in a confined area, you avoid Naruto even if you rarely look elsewhere and you attempt to avoid me as you do not know what to make of me."

Namikaze-san was silent as Sai mused over what he had said and spoke once more, "You are something of a coward."

* * *

**A/N:**This was going to be longer (the rest of the month off), but I figured it's been weeks and I should post something.

What do you mean by 'sentries'?  
Well, they are a _shinobi_ village at _war_ regardless of circumstances, they aren't going to be trusting- hence the sentries.

Why name the countries rather then villages?  
Granted, it is called the Third Shinobi World War, I do not believe that the rest of the countries (because surely the Daimyō have armies) would sit idly by as war rages around them. Maybe most of the fighting consists of shinobi villages, doesn't mean the country at large isn't at war.

Who is Usagi, Tora and Inu- how is it 'their' team?  
My head canon sees Tenzo (Tora), Kakashi (Inu) and Itachi (Usagi) as an ANBU team because it would be awesome. Period. I refer to them as team "Inuto" as in In(Inu)-U(Usagi)-To(Tora).

Captured?  
Kakashi's been an ANBU how long? And a regular shinobi how much longer? Odds are that he's been captured at some point, that his team (specifically ANBU due to the missions assigned) has also- I see him dealing with that as a cross of a injured cornered animal, feral dog and a Mama Bear.

Why does Naruto refer to Minato as Minato-ojisan?  
They never had that big moment that they did at the end of the real movie. Thus Naruto, while highly suspicious that Minato is his father, isn't going to mention anything in the fear that he's _wrong_- as I don't think he would want to lose that hope of him having family. If they eventually speak of it, well...

Why does Sai call Minato a coward?  
Partly because he would see avoidance (in a non-combative manner), which would create potential _future_ problems, as a weakness. Partly because he's _Sai_ and he would so use that as a nickname, future Hokage or not.

_**Next:**_

_"Tenzo." Kakashi drew his kohai's attention. "It is not out of cruelty that I say this."_

_Tenzo sighed deeply, shoulders slumping as if the fight had gone out of him, "I know Senpai, I just wish..."_

_"That you could save them?" He offered._

_..._

_"Sensei." Minato didn't jump though he nearly flinched at the displeased look in his grown-student's eye. "You have been avoiding me."_

_It was entirely unfair that a single _look_ could make him want to apologize and beg forgiveness._


	5. 4 : Month's End

"We need to figure out what we are going to attempt to change." Kakashi told his kohai after activating a privacy seal, _feeling_ one of Sai's little spies but content with the knowledge that the teen wouldn't utilize what ever information he gathered in a harmful way. "What we will have to let stay the same."

Tenzo looked hopeful, almost _shy_ about it, when he spoke, "The others- the ones that were also experimented on-"

"No." Kakashi interrupted, partially hating himself as he did so. "We have no idea where they are being kept, no idea where _you _were being kept. We cannot help them."

The other nodded stiffly, "Yes, Senpai."

"Tenzo." Kakashi drew his kohai's attention. "It is not out of cruelty that I say this."

Tenzo sighed deeply, shoulders slumping as if the fight had gone out of him, "I know Senpai, I just wish..."

"That you could save them?" He offered.

His kohai nodded before shaking himself, "Right. What are we going to do about the war?"

"_We_ won't be doing anything." Kakashi stated. "_You_ will be leading Team 7- assisting Sai with carrying out casualties, creating something of a barrack for Sakura to work, defending her when ever she's called to the front lines as a field medic and just making sure Naruto _lives_."

He watched the other blink, "But you said that you wouldn't let them separate us."

"I did." Kakashi said. "And _you_ won't be, but trying to keep _all_ of us together- especially since they _know_ I am a war veteran already and most likely going to be sent to the front lines- would be impractical. So I am going to trust that you can handle this and that you can get them through this even if I am unable to be present."

* * *

Sai had tucked himself away in the higher branches of a tree housed in a sizable park as he received information that his mice and insects had been gathering over the past few days. As they came, they dove onto the scroll he had prepared for their arrival, creating short, informative sentences.

_-ROOT active, Danzō in control.  
-Failed assassination on Hi no Kuni Daimyō.  
-Hi no Kuni Daimyō retreats to safe house.  
-Inu, Tora and Usagi sent to monitor Hi no Kuni Daimyō.  
-Jōnin coordinating with Daimyō's army, 1J:150S.  
-Orochimaru sent to Kusa no Kuni border.  
-Jiraiya returning from Mizu no Kuni border.  
-Tsunade deployed to Yu no Kuni border as field medic.  
-U. Kushina sent to Mizu no Kuni border.  
-N. "Coward" Minato set to be deployed to Yu no Kuni border, 1.5W.  
-Kaminari no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni enter armistice.  
-5 MIA at Kusa no Kuni border.  
-Rumor of creating peace treaty with Tsuchigumo Clan.  
-Rumor of Kaze no Kuni planning to withdraw from war.  
-H. "Niisan" Kakashi unlikely to be part of team during deployment, Yamato in charge._

He blinked at the last one, wondering at the oddly tight feeling in his throat as he sent out a mouse to Niisan containing the information he had gathered on the chance that he had obtained something that the other had not.

* * *

It had taken a bit, certainly the argument over which objects of Fath- _Sakumo's_ were valuable (_None_ because he is a sentimental _fool_) had not helped, but Kakashi had decided that it was past time to speak with his future-self. It was on the Shodai Hokage's head that he found the other, sitting and flipping idly through a book whose cover he could not see. There was a long moment of silence that passed where Kakashi sat down and his other put the book away.

It was the other whom spoke first, "Sandaime-sama has named me Clan Head until you come of age and reclaim the title as my students decided to find members to repopulate the Den."

Kakashi gave a vague noise of acknowledgement, truly not wanting to think of such things at this point in time- not with an audience, and they fell into silence once more- something he guessed was a given as he assumed they both weren't the most social of persons- before he decided that he had sought the other out for more then just _sitting_.

"Akiyo is not part of my pack." Kakashi stated.

His older self was silent a moment before responding, "No he is not. But he is now a part of _my_ pack."

"So we are not the same." He concluded after a minute of silence where they both looked down on the village from the Shodai Hokage's head.

The other shook his head, "We are similar but we are not the same, not anymore."

"I will not be _your_ shadow." He told his elder.

His other huffed a laugh, "No, I suppose you won't. It will be _your_ job to overcome it and make your own way- make a name of yourself."

"I _will_ surpass you." Kakashi warned.

Another huffing laugh, "Perhaps you will, but not today. Now remind me how far we are with Chidori."

And Kakashi did because he supposed that all that was needed to be said between them _had_ been said.

* * *

Naruto was aware that he wasn't the _brightest_ of people, he definitely wasn't the smartest of his team, and, maybe, sometimes that rankled when the others could just _look_ at a problem and simply _know_- making that voice in the back of his head despair at how _useless_ he was to them when they needed to stop and explain what they just knew. He would never be the smartest, calmest, most experienced or the one with the most skills but that was fine because he had Sakura-chan to help him with the thinking, Sai to make sure he kept his head when necessary, Yamato-taichō to lead when he didn't know what next and Kakashi-sensei to give advice.

(And Sasuke for all of those when he isn't being an _ass_.)

He was not patient, did not like reading and had a hard time sitting still but he was stubborn and would do anything to help the ones he cared about.

Which was why he bore getting beaten over the head with a cane by an old lady with _some_ patience as Sakura-chan, giggling that beautiful laugh of hers, talked the woman- Hirai, Hatake before marriage, Noriko- down until the squat, grey-haired, yukata-wearing woman allowed them to explain that they were attempting to repopulate the Hatake District and would she mind moving there? Hirai-bāchan had regarded them a moment before shouting out to her son- Kikaku- to get his lazy ass up and start packing.

The majority of those on their list were likewise female members whom had married outside the clan and started their own families, a surprising number chose to move into the district ("It is due to Namikaze-san's presence," Sakura-chan had whispered, "His being present implies that he approves the idea and it is known that he is a potential candidate to be Hokage once the war ends.") with their children and husbands- even though some families were missing members that's only explanation were "war" accompanied by tight smiles.

That did not mean that there weren't others, rather the rest consisted of people whom mostly grew up as orphans, or with a single parent, that were illegitimate children of a clan member- it was a tad disturbing the number of these whom were born inside the Red District.

Still, he considered that the mission they had assigned themselves to well done, garnering nearing one hundred people to take residence in the district. He only hoped he wasn't expected to remember all their names.

* * *

"Sensei." Minato didn't jump though he nearly flinched at the displeased look in his grown-student's eye. "You have been avoiding me."

It was entirely unfair that a single _look_ could make him want to apologize and beg forgiveness. "You have not exactly sought me out." That sounded defensive.

"And I am changing that now." And that, accusing. "I have already spoken and made my peace with my miniature."

Definitely accusing.

"Oi! Brat!" Minato decided that his Sensei deserved a gift for giving him an out of what would likely be a very awkward, very _painful_ conversation (maybe Hatake-kun was right, he was a coward with avoidance tendencies).

* * *

Organizing the settlement of the Borough was a kind of challenge that Sakura admitted to missing once she became a chūnin, her parents having holding out a hope that she would settle down as a civilian when she was a genin, and it was decided that she no longer was required to learn how to manage the Haruno properties and businesses. In another life, she admits that she would have been perfectly content to live her life out as a civilian and marry a nice man whom would provide her with beautiful children- she was also self-aware enough to realize that, had she not found her resolve during that first chūnin exam where _she_ was the protector rather then the protected, it was likely she _would_ have given up her life as a kunoichi to become a civilian.

But she _was_ a kunoichi, a _damn fine_ medic if she were to say so, and was content to find a solace in civilian acts when she could (She would _not_, Sakura told herself firmly, think of how her parents were so young or how much it _hurt_ for them to not know her- to treat her as a stranger rather then their daughter).

Of the ninety-three (soon to be ninety-four) incoming residents, only twenty-three were 'direct descents' of the clan with thirty-seven were a generation removed, twenty-two were multiple generations removed and eleven of which were of no relation. Seventeen were thirty-five and over, twenty were between ten and seventeen, nineteen were under ten years old with the bulk being ages eighteen to thirty-four. All of which were pursuing, or had pursued, a variety of career choices- many of which had at least one dog as a companion, at least from what seemed age four and up.

Nanami Kano, a rather quiet old man of fifty-eight whom had taken his mother's name as his surname when she passed, was an immense help in Sakura's quest of getting everyone settled. He had something of an eidetic memory, something which had helped him during his time as an archivist, which meant that repeated references towards the odd little map-styled list (which Naruto had declared was a bit like Iruka-sensei's seating charts) of a cheat sheet that Sakura kept with her was unnecessary. Nanami-san also knew many of the elder generation ("_All_ old people know each other, Sakura-chan!" Naruto had told her) and convinced them to help keep the adults in line as she did not wish to resort to violence when her team's standing within the village was so precarious.

Sakura was surprised to find that many of the settlers, when given the option (because _of course_ Sensei was aware of what was going on despite having been entirely absent during this time- the man didn't even show himself! He merely left a stack of papers needed for a person to change their name- along with his signature approving, as the Clan Head, the inclusion of such-and-such into the clan- on her bedside table), had decided to reclaim Hatake as their surnames. When Kakashi-sensei _did_ decide to show himself, it was armed with three sizable sealing scrolls and leading all those of Hatake blood to what he told them was the "Garden" to coax many a seed (or seedlings) into growing at an unprecedented rate.

What Sakura was most proud of though, was when- a mere two days before their month was up- the Borough came together to bring back the market just before the district gates.

The market, compromised of such diverse people as it was, had a variety of wares- even though crops _were_ the bulk seeing how they could make them grow- that were being sold with Sai being commissioned on creating posters and flyers (which Naruto was in charge of spreading around the village) along with banners for the stalls. It wasn't only stalls though, she had spied Hatake- formerly Nakahara- Kaiya performing the barebones of a tea ceremony outside for 15 ryō per person and 50 ryō per additional pot. Hirai Kikaku, Hatake Yukiko and Yokokawa Shihei had been at the edges of the makeshift stage they constructed with each playing an instrument as Takei Ami and Hatake Seka dancing center stage, armed with fans. Sakura herself took part, opening a stall where she sold an assortment of things she had forced her teammates to create- paintings from Sai, wood sculptures courtesy of Yamato-taichō, mock exploding tags (armed with paint, ink or simply water) thanks to Kakashi-sensei with Naruto bringing in odd little stone sculptures.

She felt justifiably smug over the fact that many curious residents of the village came (she even saw Chibi-Kakashi show up briefly, curious as a proverbial cat), she was even more so when they were all packing up it was mentioned that many of their customers wanted to know if and when the market would taking place again. It was with no little amount of satisfaction that she sank into the newly reopened bath house waters while mentally planning on getting privacy seals set so that a proper tea ceremony could take place, sending Sai out to inquire on where they could get animals so that dairy, eggs, meat and wool would be part of their wares- also batting around the idea of getting more performers, perhaps even having a small play take place.

Sakura truly enjoyed when her plans bore fruit.

* * *

He stood with his team before the Sandaime at the end of their month off, he was aware that Naruto was excited to be back on the roster- as was Sakura whom wasn't used to being idle even without missions as she helped out at the hospital. Even _Sai_ seemed to be as excited as he could be, evidently the teen wasn't all that comfortable with selling his paintings. And, while he was pleased to not be- essentially- useless to his village, he was dreading being on active duty as it meant they were being sent to war.

Uchiha-dono, Itachi's father, had taken the news of Senpai having a Sharingan relatively well, only barking out a brisk "Explain" when he honestly expected the man to call out for blood over a non-clan member having their dōjutsu. Senpai did which garnered a stiff nod and a "Sandaime-sama, Hatake-san" before excusing himself.

"Tomorrow you each will be evaluated and become active shinobi, and kunoichi, once more." the Sandaime concluded, dismissing them.

* * *

**A/N:** Ugh, I try to write Minato and Kakashi together (in the same scene at least) and Minato just _leaves_. Blegh. On the up side, all the main characters said their bits. [Also, check out my profile as I have 'sneak peeks' on there for nearly all my stories.]

Why are you planning on breaking up the time travelers?  
Realistically, a team of that skill wouldn't be able to stick together when there's a war on multiple fronts to be fought thus Kakashi just decided to keep the rest together and allow himself to be deployed wherever- doesn't mean that Kakashi won't make sure he has ways to keep track of them or know if they are in trouble. Also, I plan on Kakashi being on the front lines with Minato at times.

What is 1J:150S?  
It means 1 Jōnin per 150 Soldiers (or Samurai I suppose).

Why aren't the Sannin together?  
A bit of overkill where there are other areas that would need them, boosts morale for those fighting with them. Mizu - Jiraiya: admittedly mainly due to his toad summons, Kusa - Orochimaru: he's putting out his 'feelers' in grass already and Yu - Tsunade: it was left, where the Kumo-nin were coming from thus likely to have heavy casualties.

What's with the new clan members?  
Odds are many female members married outside the clan, chances also were that some people indulged on things like prostitutes and weren't always careful- then _they_ had families and so on...

And Sakura?  
I see her as someone whom would have learned to manage a large amount of people, property- if not because her parents preparing her for adulthood then due to her fantasies of marrying Sasuke and knowing it was something she should learn if she were to be a "proper" wife for a Clan Head.

Why doesn't Tenzo/Yamato refer to himself by his name?  
I see Tenzo having a kind of depersonalization disorder aimed at his sense of self as a person- his earliest memories are of being an experiment, then (depending by what you follow) he's recruited into ROOT (which really wouldn't help his sense of self) followed by ANBU which _both_ operate by codenames and false identities. Thus he doesn't really view himself as a person like he does Kakashi or Naruto or even Sai- which is part of the reason why Kakashi decided he would only refer to him as "Tenzo".

**_Next:_**

_"You're _late_?" Sensei seemed honestly baffled by it. "Why?"_

_"I was masturbating," Kakashi deadpanned. "And you just came to mind."_

_Maybe he should have worded it better- though he found it hard to regret when Sensei was blushing and sputtered._

_..._

_"So," Jiraiya-sama said, "One could say you are good with your _wood_?"_

_He did not blink, being on a squad with Genma having mostly desensitized him from 'wood' jokes, "I would say I am magnificent with my wood and in high demand."_


	6. 5: Test and Confrontations

"Namikaze Naruto," Sarutobi-sama intoned, "Will be first and fighting Kawagichi Asami."

It was not every day that one got the opportunity to see how much his timeline-challenged student had grown as a shinobi, Minato supposed, or to see the ones that aforementioned student had taught in action. At least his maybe-son seemed excited to fight, even if Kawagichi-chan, a short female chūnin with brown hair, was not.

"Naruto." Adult-Kakashi called hands moving through hand signs once the teen looked at him. "Good luck."

It took a moment before it hit that he _recognized_ those signs, at least _some_ of them, as they were signs that he and Kakashi had come up with to occupy the boy when he had been forced off missions and training due to an injury- signs that ended up being used in the field. The majority of the signs were unfamiliar so it was possible that Adult-Kakashi had developed his _own_ set for his team to use but, from what he recognized, he understood this-

**Negative action. Summon. Forbidden. Technique. R-A-S-E-N-G-A-N. Chakra. Bad spirit. Shinobi. Paranoia. Difficult. Explanation.**

The teen nodded once, presumably to the signs, before grinning, "I don't need luck to win Kakashi-sensei!"

"May the best shinobi or kunoichi win." Kawagichi-chan gritted out politely.

His maybe-son turned his grin on her, "Let's both give it our all!"

Minato watched as his maybe-son tossed a handful of kunai in a move that Kawagichi-chan dodged with ease and caught Adult-Kakashi's eye, hands going through signs, **Why a combat restriction?**

**Summons, R-A-S-E-N-G-A-N, Kinjutsu and Biju chakra would be difficult to explain. **Adult-Kakashi signed back as Kawagichi-chan, irritated by the seemingly half-hearted move, attacked his potential-son with spikes from the ground.

His maybe-child was soundly impaled by the earth spikes, disappearing in a puff of smoke that told that it had been a clone. Kawagichi-chan surveyed the area with suspicious eyes, something that proved ineffectual as the kunai- ones that his probably-son had thrown at the beginning of the fight- dispelled multiple henge jutsu with a mass of smoke as multiple Narutos charged the chūnin from all around to engage in a taijutsu battle. Kawagichi-chan dodged and twisted about as if a dancer, lashing out with fists that were encased by earth-created gloves that were effective in dispelling the clones that attacked.

Minato leaned forwards as he found that his maybe-son, the one whom Kawagichi-chan had taken for a clone and turned from after landing a hit in the belief he would dispel, formed something vaguely similar to _Rasengan_ but solely made of wind nature chakra.

"_Fūton: Senpūtama_!" the blond teen cried, hitting Kawagichi-chan's back with the jutsu- sending the unfortunate girl slamming into the flat edge of her own spikes and knocking her out.

And his maybe-son flashed Adult-Kakashi a smug grin, "I _told_ you I didn't need luck, Sensei!"

"Of course not." Adult-Kakashi murmured absently, signing to Haruno-chan -**Negative action. Summons. Limit strength. Difficult. Explanation. **- while the Hokage announced the teen's win.

**Order confirmed. **The girl signed back as Kawagichi-chan was removed, Minato inferred that it meant that Haruno-chan's summons and strength that had been taught by Tsunade-san would be difficult for them to explain to those unaware of their situation.

"Haruno Sakura against Tayama Takao." Sandaime-sama called.

Tayama-kun snorted as the two faced off, "I have to fight a chick? That's not even a challenge."

"How so, Tayama-san?" The pink haired girl asked politely.

The chūnin smirked, "Because a pretty little bitch like you _obviously_ only got your spot by opening your legs."

"You are entitled to your opinion, Tayama-san." She told him, tone unchanging.

In a blur of movement the kunoichi slammed a fist into the chūnin's stomach- Minato was certain that he heard a crack or two- then roughly grabbed the man's dark hair to bring his head to her knee before dropping him to the ground, unconscious.

Haruno-chan patted the unfortunate- and _idiotic_- man's head, "However, you are dead wrong."

"...Haruno Sakura winner." Sandaime-sama announced after a moment. "Next, Hatake Sai against Tokuda Masae."

Minato's attention was drawn to Adult-Kakashi whom moved to stand next to him as Tokuda-kun changed the field into a muddy swamp with _Doton: Yomi Numa_ as Hatake-kun took to the skies on a bird born from his own unique jutsu, "Why have you been avoiding me Sensei?"

"You aren't _my_ Kakashi." He answered after a moment where he watched Hatake-kun's bird nimbly dodge the earthen spikes Tokuda-kun had used to attack the teen.

Hatake-kun retaliated with a small flock of lethal hawks dive-bombing the chūnin before Adult-Kakashi spoke, "I know, so does he, and we are both fine with that."

_'Why aren't _you_?'_ was left unsaid.

"I was the closest person to you once," Minato said, getting to the root of the problem as Hatake-kun used _kawarimi _with what seemed to have been a mouse to knock Tokuda-kun out from behind whilst the chūnin attacked the birds. "But now I don't even know who you are."

His adult student watched silently as Yamato-san faced the over forty year old Uchiha-dono, speaking after the fight had already began with Yamato-san having wooden pikes attack the Uchiha whom slammed a hand to the ground- each finger having chakra flames- to create a cylindrical barrier of the same fire that burned away at the wood, dubbing the jutsu _Uchiha Kaenjin_. "But you _can_."

Minato almost winced as he suddenly realized that his avoiding the man had _hurt_ the other and that he had done so for no greater reason then to ensure his own comfort (two dragons clashed, one water- _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu_- the other of cursed fire- _Enton: Enryū no Jutsu_) and allowed some of his guilt to be telegraphed to the man, "I suppose I can."

"Hatake Kakashi, younger brother of Hatake Sakumo." The time-traveler introduced after a moment in which Yamato-san managed to convert the water dragon into a wooden one- a jutsu dubbed _Mokuton: Mokuryū no Jutsu_- that subdued the cursed flames.

Uchiha-dono had been bound by wood but had managed to capture Yamato-san's eyes with the Sharingan leaving the man breathing harshly even as the wood shifted so that a portion covered the Uchiha's eyes, "Namikaze Minato, it's nice to meet you Kakashi."

Then Kakashi was moving to face Uchiha-kun, the previous match being declared a tie as Uchiha-dono couldn't move and Yamato-san had been incapacitated by a genjutsu, though Minato found that the man was pleased enough over his decision to reciprocate his action that he allowed his body language to speak of his happiness- he found that he wanted the man to look like that, pleased- _happy_, more often.

The Hatake pulled up the black cloth that had been used to cover his eye during the man's time from active duty as a shinobi as Uchiha-kun activated his Sharingan and, by some unspoken message, the two Sharingan wielders made eye contact and _held_ it.

...and continued to hold it, bodies remain immobile except for a few twitches that managed to break through iron-clad control and tell them that a _very_ intense genjutsu battle was going on between the two even if it seemed as they were merely having a staring contest on this end.

"Wield that eye with the pride and honor it deserves, Hatake-dono." Uchiha-kun said to Kakashi after a time where the two's genjutsu battle seemed to have ended.

The time-traveler gave a polite incline of his head, "I will, Uchiha-dono."

Minato had absolutely _no_ idea what could have happened during that mental battle that had left the two with such respect for one another.

Regardless of his own confusion, he barely withheld a grin when his maybe-son gave a loud cheer when the Sandaime declared them shinobi and returned their headbands to them- he was curious about Kakashi asking the Hokage for a word but his perhaps-child's enthusiasm was contagious thus he put that from his mind for the time being as the teen convinced them all, even their opponents, to have a celebratory ramen together.

* * *

"You're _late_?" Sensei if seemed honestly baffled by it. "Why?"

"I was masturbating," Kakashi deadpanned. "And you just came to mind."

Maybe he should have worded it better- though he found it hard to regret when Sensei was blushing and sputtered, "K-kakashi!"

"I remembered that I was suppose to meet you after I was done," he continued blithely, eying the blond suspiciously. "Were you thinking naughty thoughts, Minato?"

The man seemed to choke a little before clearing his throat, "We are being deployed."

"Where?" Kakashi asked seriously, mind flitting to Sai's report from over a week ago _(N. "Coward" Minato set to be deployed to Yu no Kuni border, 1.5W)_.

And Se- _Minato_, if _he_ could be simply Kakashi then the man could be Minato, proved the teen's information correct, "To the Yu no Kuni border."

"Let's go." He nodded after allowing himself one last look towards the compound where his team were, some part of him was glad that he was being sent before they were as he had no idea how he would react to them being deployed- he supposed that it was a good thing he never had children, he doubted he would have been able to let them become shinobi or kunoichi since he already knew what it was like to be a child soldier.

A large part of him was also glad the he had used basically the entire month, after Sakura cleared him, to train since he knew that peacetime had taken his 'edge' from him, something that could kill him- he only hoped that he was still up to fighting a war because it would be terrible if he ended freezing or having a flashback during battle.

* * *

The teens of his team- truly _his_ now that Senpai had been deployed- had decided that, after a month off where they hadn't been allowed to even _train_ (as only active shinobi were permitted to book training grounds or, in some cases, even _enter_ them), they were over do for a team spar.

"So," Jiraiya-sama said, "One could say you are good with your _wood_?"

He did not blink, being on a squad with Genma having mostly desensitized him from 'wood' jokes, "I would say I am magnificent with my wood and in high demand."

The Sannin snorted, "Right."

"Is there a reason why you are here, Jiraiya-sama?" he asked.

Jiraiya-sama adopted a more serious demeanor, "Yamato Tenzo, great-grandson of Senju Hashirama."

"Yes." He stated more then questioned.

"How did you manage to go without notice before now?" The Sannin demanded.

He glanced at the man, "If Sandaime-sama did not tell you then I am not obligated to tell you, Jiraiya-sama. If that is all?"

The question was rhetorical sounded as he walked from his spot to break up where the spar had degenerated into something akin to a civilian's bar fight after a comment from Sai had managed to anger Naruto, whom accidentally hit Sakura when the pale teen dodged.

* * *

**A/N:**This was my first fight scene...and there was more then just one _and_ I still think it could have been better- blegh. But! There was a development between 'Kashi and 'Nato- also, the later very slightly starts to lean towards "like like" a bit there. And I _am_ pleased with Kakashi's part, however short it is, because, well, _innuendo_. Plus, Jiraiya shows up- and he's suspicious, very much so.

What is with the signing?  
Well, I believe it is entirely within the realm of possibility that Minato would create a new field code/language to occupy Kakashi when he's injured- I doubt Chibi would stand being banned from training/missions otherwise. It is also possible that Kakashi had adapted it to use for his own team- how long it took him to drill it into Naruto's skull is a matter I will let you to guess at.

What is _Fūton: Senpūtama_?  
It is an entirely made up jutsu that Naruto created at that exact moment when he remembered he couldn't use _Rasengan_- it is basically just the wind manipulation part of _Fūton: Rasengan_.

What is _Enton: Enryū no Jutsu_?  
Also a made up jutsu though Kagami knew it before the fight, it is a "Blaze Release" dragon attack basically.

Who are the fighters at the beginning?  
In order;  
Three OC chūnin that really hold no more importance beyond this chapter.  
Uchiha Kagami- it is likely he'll be dying in this war so, yeah.  
Uchiha Fugaku- he wouldn't let the "non-Uchiha Sharingan-user" thing go _that_ easily.

Why didn't Fugaku kick up more of a fuss over Kakashi having a Sharingan?  
He knows the story of how Kakashi got it so he knows that they are time-travelers which would likely put them- mostly Kakashi since he's a _veteran_ whom _knows _how/what ends the war- in the Hokage's/Council's favor as a valuable resource.  
He also knows that Kakashi wouldn't be someone to target due to connections- as Minato's student (regardless of the weirdness they're going through) and with Minato likely to becoming the Yondaime after the war.  
Plus, Mikoto is Kushina's friend and Kushina is fond of Kakashi (regardless of age) thus Fugaku's being mean to "Kashi-chan" wouldn't go over well with either woman.  
Also, what happened during their genjutsu battle had a big impact.

Why didn't Tenzo react more to the "wood" joke?  
I honestly doubt that it was the first time someone had made a joke of that, if so then shame on them because I find it amusing, thus he has been "desensitized" against such things.

**_Next:_**

_"...do you think Sensei will be alright?" the kunoichi questioned._

_The blond nodded, "Of course- I mean, he's _sensei_!"_

_Sakura let out a quiet laugh as the two fell into a companionable silence, then- "...do you think_ we _will be alright?"_

_..._

_"Kakashi!" Minato didn't know what happened, just that he was currently watching the man fall apart right in front of his eyes._

_..._

_"I'm fine." Kakashi gasped, forcefully pulling himself together because it was necessary and the war wouldn't wait for him to get his shit together for real. "I just...forgotten how much I hated this."_


	7. 6: Off To War

"...Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked, moving to sit next to her.

She hardly looked at him, "Yes, Naruto?"

"Are you alright?" the boy asked after a moment.

Looking up at the stars that, oddly, seemed fewer then the ones Sakura recalled looking at in the future- unbidden, the memory came to her of her mother telling that the stars were the wills of those that came before them, burning brightly to light the way of those living through the darkness for any whom sought their guidance and she darkly mused that this war would be igniting more stars.

And she wondered what her teams' stars would be like if they were to die.

Naruto's would be vibrant and almost like a miniature sun beaming down while Sai's would seem dimmer when compared to the others but unique and utterly breathtaking if one were to look beyond that, Yamato-taichō's would burn steady and strong and lead any whom looked without faltering. Sensei's...would be a pale fire that seemed to wink out of existence and disappear from the night sky yet always burn brightly to act as a guide whenever it was truly needed.

"...do you think Sensei will be alright?" the kunoichi questioned.

The blond nodded, "Of course- I mean, he's _Sensei_!"

Sakura let out a quiet laugh as the two fell into a companionable silence, then- "...do you think _we _will be alright?"

"...Sure we will!" Naruto said with conviction, "So long as we're together and we look after each other, we will be just fine! No stupid war will beat Team Kakashi- _dattebayo_!"

In that moment, she decided not to look underneath the underneath and worry about how her teammate had hesitated a moment, how uncertainty tinged the undercurrent of his words, how fear made his hands shake slightly or how determination made them whiten when they were clenched.

Instead, Sakura wondered if her will would ever burn brightly, _magnificently_, enough to become a star- it was a nice thought to think her team would remain together even in death.

* * *

There were moments when Naruto hated being the optimist of the team, granted they were few because he liked to believe things would work out for the better if one simply put everything they had into whatever they were doing.

Still, regardless of how he generally had no problem with being the optimist- the 'irritating ray of sunshine' Jiraiya had called it once- of the group, there were times when he hated it because sometimes his optimism felt like a _lie_. And he didn't want to lie to his team because that felt like a betrayal in and of itself.

But he _couldn't_ voice his doubt, not when _Sakura-chan_ needed him to be strong and tell her everything will be alright.

Kakashi-sensei, Naruto firmly believed, _would_ survive this since he's been through war before- he knew what to do, what not to do, what the enemy was likely to do and how to avoid getting killed by it. The rest of them, however, didn't have that experience to fall back on and- regardless of whatever knowledge Sensei had attempted to pound into their heads before his departure in an almost _desperate_ attempt to prepare them- they were left floundering their way in the dark when it came to _war_.

He knew people died in war, but he also knew that he would do _anything_ to make sure that none of his team were one of those people.

(He only hoped it would be enough.)

* * *

Traveling with Kakashi rather then...Kakashi- perhaps he should refer to the smaller as 'Kashi' to avoid confusion- was a different experience.

For one, the man was quicker and ran longer then the boy- having longer legs and years of experience to help him push past his weariness until they were required to stop for threat of exhaustion- which lead to them covering far more ground in far less time then Minato had initially expected. For two, the man was more relaxed yet also more alert then the boy- something gained from years of experience no doubt.

For three, Kakashi the man was more companionable (friendly? approachable?) then Kakashi the boy, which lead to the trip being a rather pleasant one despite their destination and reasons for going.

When they did eventually arrive, it was hailed by the scent of rotting corpses, burning flesh and orders being shouted out- the first things he saw were chūnin being directed by a jōnin to burn the corpses left from a previous battle while a pair of chūnin went through to make sure each person was actually dead, moans of shinobi left to die slowly were silenced with swift efficiency as grunts sounded over the labor of dragging bodies into a pile to burn.

Behind him came a half chocked noise- almost like a gag- and Minato suddenly realized that Kakashi wasn't following behind him, the man having froze at the tree line to stare with a wide yet vacant look at the carnage.

"Kakashi..?" He hesitated, slowly approaching the man.

There was a moment where Kakashi locked gazes with him and he saw a certain kind of insanity in the man's eye, born from a lifetime of demons that had never truly been defeated, merely bound temporarily to be dealt with at a later date. These demons, however Kakashi had gotten them and however many there truly were he did not know, broke free a moment after their gazes met and the time-traveler's hands gripped tightly at silver hair while his breathing sped up- body hunching as if it wanted to curl up but, for whatever reason, unable to.

"Kakashi!" Minato didn't know what happened, just that he was currently watching the man fall apart right in front of his eyes.

* * *

_I'm fine, _he chanted to himself, _I'm _fine_._

_(Blood- redredblood- knewhimwasonhisteamatthechūninexams- OhgodObitoI'msosorrysorrymyfault- neverseensomuchblood__- fleshburninghowdoesitburnsofast-)_

_I'mfineI'mfineI'mfineI'mfineI'mfine-_

_(Movemovemovemoveifyoustopyou- Havetobequickersmarterstronger- Havetosavethem- SorrysorrysorryIamonlyhuman-_ _War'scomewemarchwefightwebleedwe_die._)_

"I'm fine." Kakashi gasped, forcefully pulling himself together because it was necessary and the war wouldn't wait for him to get his shit together for real. "I just...forgotten how much I hated this."

"Kakashi-" Minato started.

He cut the man off, "I'm _fine. _We don't have time for this- there's work to do."

* * *

"Yamato-senpai."

He turned, looking at the ROOT member of their team, "Yes, Sai?"

"Team Kakashi is being deployed in twelve days to be placed under Tsunade-sama's command." The teen informed him.

He nearly let out a laugh, relief flooding through him, "It seems our first deployment in a war will be with Kakashi-senpai after all."

* * *

**A/N:**Ah, and so begins the "War Arc" [which will likely be one of the longer ones]...Can anyone believe that this was originally suppose to be a two-shot with only the "beginning" and "end" points? Or that I actually made a map for this consisting of war lines, supply lines, enemy camps, ally camps, Konoha's camps and major battles?

What is with the stars?  
Honestly, they came out of nowhere after watching _Lion King_ where Simba mentions how "the great kings of the past" are watching over us. I don't know _why_ but I linked that idea to the "Will of Fire" and thus the star bit was born.

Naruto's doubt?  
Well, he can't be an optimist _all_ the time and he has to have worries, thus he has doubts and concerns about them being sent to war- not really that far fetched, or at least I don't think so.

Kakashi's freak out?  
Yes he's done tough missions during ANBU (my personal head-cannon has him returning to ANBU during the time skip so fairly recent ANBU missions at that) but I doubt that they would have been of the sheer _scale_ of a _war_.  
Plus, he's liable to a freak out seeing as he's been a bit abused between being sent to the past, losing his pack, having to create a _new_ pack, facing his demons at the house his father committed suicide, watching as his past self continues with mistakes he loathes himself for making, facing with people whom are merely _ghosts_ to him, having his sensei avoid him, knowing he'll be sent to the front lines but unsure if he'll be able to handle it and worrying about his team being sent to war- not to mention the pressure of deciding what they should and _shouldn't_ or can and _cannot _change.

Are Team Kakashi going to war together?  
Technically? No. The team is under Tsunade while Minato and Kakashi are at a different camp on the same border- though once Kakashi knows they are at the _same_ border...

**_Next:_**

_Before Hatake Sakumo failed his mission, Kakashi remembered that the village had been at a kind of peace that it failed to achieve when at war- he would suppose that it was also a happier time then._

_Certainly there were less mourners then._

_..._

_Sai was aware that his teammates were tense, out of a mixture of worry and anticipation, thus he decided to rectify it as best he could- it wouldn't do for them to die of a rookie mistake after all._

_..._

_"Status?" Kakashi demanded, ignoring Minato's concerned looks._

_The jōnin glanced at the blond before looking at him and answering, "Twenty-seven dead; three jōnin, seven chūnin and the rest the Daimyō's men. There are nearly thirty wounded."_

_"How many can be treated on site?" He asked briskly._


	8. 7: Forwards March

Before Hatake Sakumo failed his mission, Kakashi remembered that the village had been at a kind of peace that it failed to achieve when at war- he would suppose that it was also a happier time then.

Certainly there were less mourners then. There was also, he mused darkly as he peered down from a rooftop near the Academy at a crowd of civilian parents gathered before the shinobi school to protest en masse, less civil unrest.

Kakashi wasn't sure _what_ exactly they were protesting- it may have been the Academy not allowing them to withdraw their children or the Council-issued drafting of children to bolster their numbers for the war- but decided, as the crowd shifted with discontent, that it really didn't matter the reasoning only that it was happening.

An Academy teacher came out to politely ask the crowd to leave and suddenly the crowd's anger, which had been simmering until that point, ignited in such a way that the crowd was transformed into a riot. A group, uncoordinated and having no real chance but trying anyways, lunged at the startled chūnin and Kakashi shot a suiton jutsu, nothing more powerful then water shooting out of a rather large hose, at them when he realized the teacher wasn't going to do anything in his shock.

It only made things worse.

"You- you _shinobi_," A woman whom he couldn't pick out shouted from the mob, spitting out the word as if it were one of the most vile curses ever invented. "Ruin everything with your violence and revenge and your _wars!_ If it weren't for _you_ then we wouldn't need to send _our children_ out to _die! Leave our children be!_"

The end was a shriek, furious and untamed and guided by fear.

And another voice shouted, this time a man, "Why should our children die for you!? Why should we be forced to send our children out to a war you started!? Leave our children be!"

That final sentence, perhaps due to the repetition, was taken up as a mantra by the mob as it worked itself into a frenzy, forcing himself to resume his suiton jutsu until the Uchiha police force arrived to control the riot whom were attempting to storm the Academy.

As Kakashi turned to leave, he saw ANBU tense and ready for if the Uchiha were unable to contain the mob and he shivered at the thought of what they might do- they were near the Hokage after all.

_It does not concern you_. He told himself firmly as he left, wishing that that did not feel like a lie.

* * *

Sai was aware that his teammates were tense, out of a mixture of worry and anticipation, thus he decided to rectify it as best he could- it wouldn't do for them to die of a rookie mistake after all. What they needed was to be comforted and put at ease.

_(Comfort:  
-Verb_  
_1. Ease the grief or distress of; console._  
_2. Improve the mood of or restore a sense of well-being to.)_

He knew the definition though he did not know the actions and words that were required to comfort a person properly, it was not a skill he had needed previously thus one he had never cared to learn.

It nearly caused him to stop when he recalled the gift that _Niisan_ had shoved into his hands before his deployment; a leather bound journal, small enough to be tucked into a weapons' pouch or a pocket. He recalled being shocked when he first opened it, finding that each page of that small book housed a storage seal just big enough to carry books similar to the one they were in, with a title over the seal to tell what it contained. He had been even more shocked when he found that the sealed books were handwritten books on topics that Niisan had deemed important for him to learn- from little shinobi tips he had never learned and jutsu that may suite his style of fighting to social customs, social norms along with actions, reactions and the reasons for each when dealing with interpersonal relationships and communication.

It was possibly the greatest gift he had ever been given and it was all done _by hand_- meaning that Niisan had taken the time, had probably started on it before they had even arrived in the past, to write out the information, organize an index and then seal it all neatly in a book he could easily carry and access whatever he needed.

Pulling out the book, he flipped through until he found a promising title _"Comfort: Teammates"_ and sent a small _pulse_ of chakra to release the sealed book. He grabbed the second book with ease, tucking the first away before opening the second and beginning to read without breaking stride.

"Kakashi-senpai is rubbing off on you guys too much..." Yamato- perhaps it would be prudent, now that Kakashi had been dubbed Niisan, to give the man a nickname also- muttered from behind him, the man having decided to guard the rear as with Ugly leading with Dickless.

He took that as a compliment but said nothing as he focused on his book, trusting not only his scouts but his team.

_The first part of comforting someone takes place before the actual action and it is to gather Intel on what is bothering your target, information such as;_

_What is bothering them?  
What possible reasons may it be bothering them?  
To what extent does it bother them?_

_Being able to deduce what and why and how much something is bothering your target is helpful in preventing you from making the situation _worse_- like a mission, you cannot proceed with out the proper intelligence without risk to your objective._

Which was true, information- correct information- was vital to successfully completing a mission. Thus Sai took the time to answer the questions provided with the information he had; war was the what, the team being separated- by death or deployment- was the why and greatly was the extent.

Satisfied with this, he continued reading.

_Once you have gathered the proper Intel, you must determine if your comfort will be passive or active. To determine which course you should take, answer the following question;_

_Is there anything you can do- whether it be physically or verbally doing something- to effect what is bothering your target?_

_If NO, then your comfort will be more passive-_

He paused, decided his answer was 'yes' and skipped to the portion about active comfort.

_If YES, then your comfort will be passive. Now answer this;_

_Is the action your taking to effect what is bothering your target verbal or physical?_

_If VERBAL then you need to judge _how_ whatever information you say would effect your target. It is not like a mission where all information- good or bad- is required to be told clearly, concisely and immediately. Information which is "good" can be told in a similar manner as there is no real reason why you shouldn't just bluntly inform your target of the "good news" in order to positively alter their emotional unbalance._

There was more, Sai was aware, but he had the information that he needed and thus followed the advice and spoke bluntly, "We are being deployed in the same area as Niisan."

The two were startled and he wondered why Yamato had decided to withhold the information when he saw a tenseness loosen and disappear from his teammates' bodies.

* * *

"Status?" Kakashi demanded, ignoring Minato's concerned looks.

The jōnin glanced at the blond before looking at him and answering, "Twenty-seven dead; three jōnin, seven chūnin and the rest the Daimyō's men. There are nearly thirty wounded."

"How many can be treated on site?" He asked briskly.

This time the answer was immediate, "Fourteen."

"How many able-bodies?" he pressed, trying to remember everything he could about the Yu front during the war.

The amount of information he recalled was disgustingly small as, by the time he had truly been deployed at a front, it was in _Kusa_. But his irrational anger at himself- as he couldn't have exactly planned on going to the past and winding up on the Yu no Kuni border- was pushed aside as he focused on the jōnin, "Two hundred and seventy-one whom are the Daimyō's men, two other jōnin and nine chūnin."

"Is it only soldiers whom were hit?" He asked.

What Kakashi _did_ remember, which was less of the Yu border and more of a standard between all borders, was that 'camps' generally consisted of three hundred and twenty-four 'soldiers', six 'runners' and twelve 'medics'. The soldiers were those whom did the actual fighting, the runners were those whom were to carry messages between camps and the generals while the medics healed the injured that could be healed on site though half generally were 'learning on the job' so to say.

The jōnin nodded, "The rest were relocating camp as soon as our scouts noticed Kumo-nin approaching."

"And where's camp now?" Minato asked, finally speaking up.

It was a chūnin whom answered, their task finished, "Twenty-five miles north-west of this grave pit."

"Well then," Kakashi said with far more cheer then he felt, "Let's head back to camp."

* * *

**A/N:**I love Sai and Kakashi- both chibi and adult. Also, I will be able to try my hand at fighting scenes soon- here's to hoping I improve.

What is with the non-withdrawal policy and draft that (chibi)Kakashi mentioned?  
Well, it seemed logical that a militaristic society would be looking for ways to bolster it's armed (would ninja be considered armed? Eh.) forces- those in charge are aware that their soldiers are dying in the war and that those dead will need to be replaced, hence the draft. The unable to withdraw was a similar mindset, though more immediate for those older (as the ones closer to graduating would be more likely to be withdrawn by their parents) students whom will be sent off to war.

Why a riot?  
Why not? Tensions are high, people are scared and angry- perfect combination for a mob to form in my opinion. There will also be at least one more riot during this arc, anyone want to guess what it'll be about and who'll be targeted?

Why did (chibi)Kakashi mention the ANBU like that?  
ANBU are to protect the Hokage at all costs and if the best way to do so is by _eliminating_- as in killing every participant of- the mob, then they will do so. They are, however, smart enough to recognize that such actions will have negative effect- as it will cause the majority of the population to _react_- so they won't do anything until there is no other option. [For those worried, and as this riot will- _maybe_- only be mentioned in passing, the Uchiha were able to contain the riot so everyone lived even if there were injuries.]

What's with Sai's book?  
We_eeellll_...that would be telling- besides, I can so see Kakashi giving a gift like that then acting as if nothing happened. [On another note, writing that was difficult because how do you properly explain something you just 'know' to someone who doesn't?]

Why doesn't the jōnin protest when Kakashi takes charge?  
Because Minato didn't and he (? did I give the jōnin a gender?) trust's Minato's judgment. Likely he'll think of it as a "training exercise" for Kakashi and the Minato will step in if he disagrees- which is true in some aspects, though Minato is more assessing then teaching Kakashi.

What's with the camp numbers?  
In my mind, each camp- barring the one with the Sannin as they're special cases- have 324 fighters. 300 are soldiers/samurai provided from the country's army, 6 are jōnin and 18 are chūnin. Then there are the runners whom carry messages and basically act as communication between the war fronts and the homefront- there are 6 of these. Then come the medics which are 12 in number but, due to prejudice (? stigma?) towards the position, there are very few fully qualified medics thus half are basically interns/apprentices whom are learning as they go right on the front- desperately hoping their mentor doesn't die on them and leaving _them_ in charge of healing everyone.

Whew. Right, so...Kakashi gave Sai a book, what kind of gift do you think he gave the rest of Team Kakashi?

**_Next:_**

_"Tch." Sakura looked at the woman who _would_ be her mentor in the future, the blond eying her with an air that said she wasn't impressed with what she saw. "Sensei said he would be sending me a medic- not a little girl playing nurse."_

_Sakura felt her eyebrow twitched._

_..._

_"Brings back memories?" Minato asked._

_The Hatake gave him a bland look, "Unfortunately. I forgotten how much hundreds of people living together without proper plumbing _stank_."_

_"Oi." A chūnin called, offended. "We keep as clean as we can what with only being allowed to bath once every three days." _


End file.
